D-ABMDI General Terms

Anecephalic

An infant born without a brain

BEREAVEMENT

Sorrow following the death of a loved one

BRAIN DEATH

Final cessation of activity in the central nervous system, as indicated by a flat EEG or absence of cerebral blood flow for a predetermined period of time

CARDIAC DEATH

Final cessation of activity in the cardiovascular system involving the heart and blood vessels

CESSATION

The final stoppage of action

CORONER

Typically an elected official who decides whether a death occurred under circumstances that require an autopsy, either by law or to determine manner or cause.

JURISDICTION

The power of authority a court or office has over individuals or trauma

LNOK

The person from whom the medicolegal death investigator must secure consent before initiating any procurement activity

MEDICAL EXAMINER

Usually a medical doctor, although not necessary a highly trained pathologist. Like a coroner, a ME decides whether a death occurred under circumstances that may require an autopsy and who will perform it if the ME is not qualified.

OPO (organ procurement organization)

The agency responsible for identifying potential donors, obtaining consent, and procuring organs

POSTMORTEM CHANGES

Alterations of the body following death, including decomposition and environmental resuscitative injuries

STATUTES

Laws enacted by the legislative branch of government

Verify

Establish or confirm the accuracy of information or evidence through testimony

Vital statistics

A gov agency responsible for maintaining a system of registration and release of records for the public, including birth, marriage, divorce, an death

Official pronouncement of death can

be determined by state statue and local customs

Authorization to conduct a medicolegal autopsy must be provided by

the coroner or ME when jurisdiction is established

A previously healthy four-month-old infant is found unresponsive in his crib at home. He is rushed to a hospital, where he is maintained on a respirator for 26 hours before being declared dead. No external trauma or disease is noted by the treating physician:

The coroner has jurisdiction because of the unexplained death of an infant

Your office is investigating a suspected SIDS death. You should notify your statewide SIDS program

ASAP following the autopsy

In general, which of the following are NOT normally for organ/tissue procurement purposes?

reproductive organs

Authorization for organ/tissue procurement is considered valid if

the decedent's LNOK or rep has given consent

The death investigator and a police officer arrive at the scene within minutes of each other. What is the best approach?

A "team" approach to performing the work

In constructing a narrative report, the main idea is to relate

an overall and concise view of what happened

Choose one of the MOST important communication skills for gathering info at the scene

listen and actively study witnesses

The pathologist must be alerted to religious requests from the family

before the autopsy is performed

When communicating with the pathologist, a good investigator distinguishes between a request for info and a request for an opinion. Which type is the following question: "What time was the death pronounced?"

request for info

ANTEMORTEM BLOOD SAMPLE

An initial blood sample that usually is obtained when the subject arrives at the hospital ER, before additional diagnostic or therapeutic treatment is initiated

AUTHORIZATION

Official permission granted by a superior

Common law marriage

A marriage that is recognized because the couple have been cohabiting for a determined length of time, yet a legal marriage ceremony has not been performed

CONFIDENTIAL

Revealed in confidence (trust, assurance), to be kept secret

CREMATION

The reduction of a dead human body to inorganic bone fragments by intense heat in a specially designed chamber

DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION

Personal identifying and specific info regarding an individual's age, social security number, gender, address, and so on

DISINTERMENT

The opening of a grave and removal of the body for the purpose of reexamination or removal to another site

EMBALMER

An individual licensed by the state to disinfect, preserve, and cosmetically restore dead human bodies

EUPHEMISM

A mild or inoffensive term or phase that is substituted for another, more explicit term

FUNERAL DIRECTOR

An individual or corporation licensed by a state to prepare dead human remains, other than by embalming, for interment or other means of disposal. The person also conducts funeral services and counsels decedents' families

GUARDIANSHIP or POA

Legal authorization to act on another individual's behalf. This authority usually ceases after death

INTERROGATION

The formal act of examining a person by asking questions, usually a law enforcement function

INTERVIEW

A formal face-to-face conversation between a reporter (the medicolegal death investigator) and a person from whom information is sought (the witness)

MEDIA

Any news-reporting agency (e.g. newspaper, magazine, radio, television) and its representatives

OBJECTIVE REPORT

A report made in an independent and unbiased manner, without regard for personal attitudes or thoughts

PATHOLOGIST

A physician trained in the identification and diagnosis of disease and injury who may perform autopsies

PEDIGREE

The list of ancestors on a person's family tree

The public

Any person or agency not officially affiliated with or recognized as a member of your office

Orthodox Jewish objections

object to autopsy but if needed it must be performed before sundown of the day the person died

Muslim objections

no official concern

Jehovah's witnesses objections

not opposed

Catholic objections

not opposed

Laotian (Hmong) objections

generally opposed

Mexican Catholic objections

opposed, unless required by law

Protestants objections

not opposed

Native American objections

generally object to autopsy

RETORT

A vessel or chamber in which substances are decomposed by heat

SELF-INFLICTED

The infliction of injury or death on oneself

STATUTORY

Authorized by law

When obtaining information about a decedent from family members, the first priority should ALWAYS be to obtain info from

the family member who last saw and/or talked with the decedent, or has firsthand knowledge regarding the circumstances surrounding the death and/or medical history

Family members often ask why the ME/coroner is involved. When discussing the case with the family, what is best prescribed answer to give them?

explain what is believed to have occurred (homicide, suicide, unexpected death) and why the ME/coroner is investigating the death

When investigating a "homicide" death case, you discover that the victim and surviving family are orthodox Jews. The family voice their objection (based on religious beliefs) to an autopsy being performed. Which of the following would be the BEST RECOMMEND procedure to follow?

counsel the family. explain the circumstances surrounding the investigation and why (criminal prosecution, etc) the autopsy needs to be performed

If the deceased is decomposed, mutilated, or burned beyond recognition and the family still insists, for religious for cultural reasons, on viewing the body, the investigator should

prepare the family before viewing with a verbal explanation and possibly photographs of the remains

AUTOEROTICISM

sexual activity in which an individual indulges in private, usually involving some form of asphyxia to heighten sexual pleasure

CONFIDENTIAL (PRIVATE) INFORMATION

info that is protected by law and can be released only to certain authorized parties of that requires a court order for its release

HOLD-HARMLESS AGREEMENT

a signed agreement or contract in which the signing parties agree not to file action for any injuries against the receiving party that might arise out of the contract or agreement

PUBLIC INFORMATION

info on the public has a legal right to know that cannot be withheld

SURVIVORS

those persons (family/friends) who remain alive after the death of someone else (family member or friend)

A clandestine methamphetamine laboratory has exploded, and the "chemist's" body is on the scene. You may undertake your scene investigation when

the police and FDs think the scene is safe

You arrive at an outdoor homicide scene and find that the crime scene tape binds too small a perimeter. Onlookers and media are beginning to gather. You should

keep the tape in place and advise the investigating police agency of the need to enlarge the perimeter

You are investigating the death of an unidentified person. A search of the subject's pockets turns up an ID card without a facial photograph on it. You should

be aware that an ID card that does not contain a facial picture should never be used to make a positive ID

The basic purpose of crime scene photography is

to document the crime scene

Homicide detectives at the scene of a sex-related death ask that the deceased by fingerprinted immediately to expedite ID. What is the proper action to take

place proper bags on the hands to protect any trace evidence and assure the police that the body will be fingerprinted in a timely manner after evidence collection

AMBIENT

a condition that completely surrounds or encompasses something

ANOMALY

a marked deviation from normal; for example, congenital defects

CHAIN OF CUSTODY

the documentation of sequential possession and location of evidence

COORDINATE METHOD OF MEASUREMENT

measurement of evidence from a fixed point along a baseline

CRITICAL INCIDENT STRESS DEBRIEFING (CISD)

a process by which emergency personnel are offered the support necessary to reduce job

DENTAL RECORDS

written charts and radiographs of an individual's teeth

DEPENDENT

the supporting surface of the body

DIAGRAM

an illustrative outline of a tract of land, or something else that can be projected in a linear fashion, which is not necessarily intended to be perfectly accurate

DNA

the genetic material passed through from the cells of one generation to another

ELECTROLYTES

components of a solution containing dissolved acids, bases, or salts forming constitutes of tissue fluid, plasma, and cellular fluid

EXPLODING VIEW OR CROSS-PROJECTION DRAWING TYPE

similar to the floor-plan type, with folded-out walls; helpful in documenting bullets or blood stains on walls

F-STOP (APERTURE)

the light-gathering ability of the lens

FILM SPEED

ASA/ISO/DIN indicates the speed of the film. The higher the ASA/ISO #, the less available light is required to take a picture. For example, 100 or 200 film is good for bright days, whereas 400 would be more appropriate for overcast conditions

FLOOR-PLAN-VIEW DRAWING TYPE

Overhead view of the scene, detailing evidence in relation to the surroundings

HAZ/MAT (HAZARDOUS MATERIALS UNIT)

the agency charged with the responsibility for planning preparedness and response actions related to spills or discharges or oil and hazardous materials into the environment

INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM

a standardized system of managing assigned resources for effective and efficient control of any emergency event

Livor Mortis (lividity)

Postmortem settling of the blood in the dependent portions of the body

Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS)

Descriptive data provided by the manufacturers and distributors of hazardous materials

Multiple-fatality incident

any multiple-fatality event that exceeds the normal capabilities and preparedness of an agency, requiring additional resources, manpower, and response from that agency

Narrative report

an objective report of the investigative process, written in chronological fashion

NCIC (National Crime Information Center)

Unidentified-person files that allow data on these persons to be compared via computer. Also NCIC allows data to be entered onto a computer based system that contains information regarding reported missing reports.

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

Part of the U.S. Department of Labor; the regulatory and enforcement agency for safety and health in most U.S. industrial sites.

Panning

Recording video of a scene, starting at point A and slowly moving the camera across the scene to point B

Peripheral blood

Blood recovered from arteries and veins in the extremities or head regions

Poison control center

Provides medical info on a 24-hour basis for investigation of incidents involving potentially poisonous materials

Prone

lying face downward

Reconstruct

to build again, to rebuild

Rigor mortis (rigidity)

Postmortem stiffening of the body

Radiation safety officer (RSO)

designed individual who is trained and certified to handle radiation hazards

Scene perimeter

the boundary around a death scene

Sclera

the so-called white of the eye, consisting of a tough, fibrous tissue

Search and rescue

volunteers trained in scene searching, processing, and rescue